Deep at the bottom of the Pacific ocean, you must search for the lost treasure
of Atlantis. Now, the Pacific ocean covers an absolutely massive area, and
that's also the case in this exploration game. Close to the surface, there are
few hazards, but as you dive deeper, you will encounter lots of coral reefs
which bar your way, and sea creatures that must be avoided. You also need to
top up your oxygen supply regularly. The graphics are stunning, but to be
honest, the playing area is so phenomenally large, and the screens are so
similar to each other, that it's not worth your while trying to find Atlantis.
Sadly, this is another occasion in which the programmers concentrated on
creating beautiful graphics, but forgot to include a proper game.

A fairy has been kidnapped, so Pac-Man has to journey through Pac-Land to rescue
her and send her back to Fairyland. The ghosts are also out to stop him, though;
one of them has a plane to drop bombs on Pac-Man, and another has a car.
However, if Pac-Man finds any power pills, then he can kill them. There are also
lots of cherries to collect along the way for bonus points. The power pills also
enable you to jump higher, although this won't help you when getting past the
lakes; you must waggle the joystick instead. The graphics are really colourful
and really appealing to children. The same goes for the cheerful tune which gets
irritating after listening to it often – although the jingle that plays when you
lose a life is sublime. The game is relatively easy but it's still good.

Ever since its release in 1980, Pac-Man has remained enduringly popular
and is one of the best known video games of all time – but thanks to this
emulator, it is possible to play the original coin-op game on your CPC! There
are obviously some limitations; the graphics are drawn in medium-resolution
MODE 1, so stippling has been used to colour in some of the ghosts, and the
sound emulation isn't perfect, although the tune at the beginning of each game
is instantly recognisable. The game also plays noticeably more slowly than the
original, but despite this, it's not detrimental to the gameplay and it remains
very enjoyable. Pac-Man never gets old – and as this is an emulator, it's
possible to play the many unofficial bootleg and hacked versions of the coin-op
game as well!

It's another Pac-Man game, but this one's in isometric 3D and it's absolutely
fantastic, although the graphics are in boring monochrome. Still, you'll find
that it's a great game. Each section of mazes has a different theme depending on
the difficulty level, and there are three amazing tunes which will have you
humming away in no time. There are also lots of bonuses to collect. It's a shame
about the graphics, as they could have been much better with some colour, but
this game still rocks.

Travel across 17 nations and burst balloons as you go! There's not much of a
plot to this game, but each level is divided into three screens, and you have to
use a harpoon to blast the balloons. However, they will divide into two smaller
balloons, and the same thing happens if you burst these balloons! If you're not
careful, you'll have dozens of tiny balloons bouncing about and you'll lose one
of your six lives. This is a really simple and addictive game, and it's one of
the very few games around that makes full use of the Plus' extra facilities. If
it was that little bit easier, I would probably have given this game the full
ten marks.

Grand Dizzy's toy-making machine has gone haywire and Dizzy has been left to
control it! Random shapes fall out of the machine and you've got to align them
with the correct slots at the bottom to make the toys. It's a bit like those
toys for two-year-olds where they have to work out which shapes fit in which
holes. It's yet another game that only features Dizzy so that it'll sell, and
this one's absolute rubbish. It's unoriginal and boring, although the younger
ones might like it.

The Panzadrome is a heavily fortified island guarded by robot tanks, and your
aim is to destroy it completely. You begin with a poorly equipped tank, but
there are factories on the island where you can upgrade it. However, you will
have to get past armies of robot tanks and turrets and avoid any mines in your
path in order to reach a factory – but achieving this is practically impossible.
Moreover, all this destruction leaves craters in your way which your tank
cannot drive over, and you could easily find your path blocked, unless you have
some Polycrete to fill in the crater – but to obtain it, you must find the
correct factory first! The graphics and sound effects are very poor and the game
is far too difficult.

Do you want to be the best prize fighting Thai boxing champion ever? Great,
because here's your chance to take them all on in the ring in this game, which
has been endorsed by André Panza. The fighting is quite smooth and the
controls are very easy to pick up and learn. There are lots of different moves,
and each time you make a good hit on your opponent, a yellow flash appears on the
screen. You can choose from a number of different fighters and different
opponents. As you win bouts, you get more money and are able to fight the better
fighters and win trophies. The referee is quite good and keeps an eye on the game
when you or your opponent's energy runs out, indicating that the match is won or
lost. The
cartridge version
has greatly improved graphics and colour over the normal CPC version.

If you were ever a paperboy when you were young, you'll know how ungrateful your
customers can be. You've got to deliver your papers to all the houses on your
street by firing them into the mailboxes and avoiding people, objects and cars.
You also have to make sure you don't run out of newspapers, but more can be
picked up on the way. If you don't deliver newspapers to any of the houses,
they'll cancel their subscription. It's a very original game and fun to play,
too, although it is slightly difficult. The graphics are quite good, but
amazingly, there's no sound at all; apparently the programmer ran out of memory!

Paperboy is back to deliver some more papers. However, this time, you can also
play as Papergirl (so as not to be seen as being sexist). The neighbourhoods are
a little strange, though; all the streets have castles in them! You'll also have
to dodge the likes of skateboarders, bouncing balls, ghosts (!), and the
obligatory workmen carrying furniture or glass. The game has better graphics and
is much faster than its predecessor – in fact, I think it's too fast. It
also makes crashing into things a frequent occurrence, and your six lives will
quickly run out. In addition, you'll only hear any sound if you have 128K.